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Bristol Banter Podcast

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If you want to send me anything (nothing dangerous, illegal, gross, or perishable, please), feel free. But if you send me anything at the destinations below, I'll assume you're writing to me as regards me or this blog, and not any of the other places I write. You can reach me at:

From an early age I've been interested in genealogy. My paternal grandmother had so much information about where and who she came from. I remember seeing a huge, handwritten wheel that was made with her at the center and her family branching out from there. I was struck by it all. And, when she died, I volunteered to be the caretaker of all of the family history documents, letters, photos, and memorabilia.

If you don't have the time or the means to travel to England, you can pretend, with a Bristol Box full of English goodies. Disclaimer: I have yet to actually set foot in England, so these might be a bit stereotypical for "tea time", but hey, it's all in fun.

I took Spanish in school. It made the most sense, since I had already had some Spanish in elementary school, and I had a couple of Spanish-speaking people in my family. I'm glad to have learned what Spanish I did, and living here in Arizona, it really does come in handy. But I always kind of wished I'd learned some German.

Jane Austen Mad Libs*. Because why not. If I run out of other ideas, I may make this a semi-regular feature, at least making it through her six major works. And maybe some other public domain works. Let me know if you have any requests!

When I was a kid, I heard about the Seven Wonders of the World on a semi-regular basis. But, other than the Great Pyramid at Giza (though I always thought the Pyramids were in Cairo proper because I knew nothing of Egyptian geography), I had no idea what the other six wonders were.

Imagine a museum of the highest caliber. Imagine there being no admission cost. Now imagine that there are almost a couple dozen of them, each specializing in a different topic, all within the same general geographic area, most reachable by public transportation (though hard to park at). That... is the Smithsonian.

There are at least three different kinds of people. Those who can just naturally draw, those who can't and don't care, and those who can't but want to improve. I'm speaking to that last group in this post.

Wherein I give my take on the many characters of 'Winnie the Pooh'. The ones that "everyone" likes I don't necessarily like. And the "universally" reviled characters, well, sometimes I understand where they are coming from.

In residential architecture, I love Craftsman, Tudor, Gothic, and more. Including Mid-Century Modern. This love of Mod transfers to things other than architecture, as well. I love the style in furniture, shapes and patterns, advertisements, movie intros, and, yes, houses.

We jump right into our first Bristol Box with toys and items you can build with your hands. Whether you like to create from scratch or closely follow included instructions, almost everyone likes to build something. I've included many options for this box, so people can pick and choose what works for them.

These days, subscription box services are quite the rage, but they are all very focused on one interest, such as food or superheroes, and require a costly subscription, often with an obligation for a certain number of months. You're also stuck with whatever comes in the box, regardless of quality, your taste, or whether it fits into your life. Bristol Box is different.

I seem to accumulate "stuff". All kinds of stuff. Possessions, paper products (yay Costco), books, food in the pantry, files on my computer, pounds on my waistline. Not because I'm a compulsive hoarder. I just like to be prepared. "Just in case."

We are still four years off from our next U.S. Census taking, but our census fascinates me at all times in between. Historical censuses are pivotal pieces in my family history research, and they are just interesting in their own right, for taking a snapshot in time.